Lamborghini Teams With Swiss Watchmaker for Gallardo LP570-4 Special Edition

Since premium automakers like Lamborghini and high-end Swiss watchmakers, like Blancpain, can offer only so many products to corral money from the world's wealthiest consumers, sometimes they need to team up to offer something ever-so-slightly different that is "special" and "limited" enough to take another bite out of that collective cash cow. Hence, we see cars like the Gallardo LP570-4 Blancpain Edition, a car that gets some performance, exterior, and interior enhancements to make it more exclusive than those other Gallardos.

Blancpain is a sponsor of Lamborghini's Super Trofeo racing series, so the partnership on the new car is a natural extension of that relationship. The car was unveiled at the final Super Trofeo race in Vallelunga, Italy over this past weekend. The new Gallardo combines the street-legal status of other Gallardo models with a variety of performance tweaks from the Super Trofeo cars. Its 570-horsepower 5.2-liter V10 engine is the same used in the racing cars, as is the prominent rear wing and vented engine cover. Other upgrades include carbon ceramic disc brakes, Skorpius wheels, and a carbon fiber injection that includes pieces like the rear diffuser and mirror casings. The carbon fiber upgrades help to keep weight down to 2,950 lbs., nearly 500 lbs. lighter than the Gallardo LP560-4.

The lightened load and performance tweaks combine to deliver a 0-to-62 mph time of 3.4 seconds, a 0-to-124 mph time of just 10.2 seconds and a top speed just south of 200 mph.

Aesthetics-wise, black and yellow is the theme that ties the exterior and interior together. The matte black paint on the outside is met with a few yellow accents, like the brake calipers and badging around the front and back. Inside, a black Alcantara interior features yellow stitching and Blancpain badging. Surprisingly, no mention of a Blancpain-inspired instrument panel or any other features to tie it in to the watchmaker's core business.

There's no pricing floating around on this one just yet, but the Blancpain edition will be making an appearance at the Paris Motor Show. Of course, it will be overshadowed by the new model(s) that Lamborghini's been teasing for the past couple weeks.